Jerry Jeff Walker Mr Bojangles by tovo

tovo
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Mon May 02, 2011 2:56 pm

Hi all. I really like this tune, I guess because it tells a story and I like that. I changed the arrangement just slightly, doing the chorus after the 2nd verse instead of the 1st. I also tried something different with Mr Bogangles lines, tying to imagine how he might sound. Critical input on this is not only welcome, but really appreciated. Thanks.




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willem
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Mon May 02, 2011 3:04 pm

Mate Tony-mate Tony-mate Tony,,,,,DANCE......WOW,,,MY all time favorite such a great tune,,suggestion for the man by the man.....really,really enjoy it Tony..


Yamaha48
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Mon May 02, 2011 3:21 pm

hey my friend Tony.

Thanks for sharing this nice video.
You can sing the song my friend,i like it.
I can not play this song,what can i say how to play??
But i like the total my friend.
And i like your Taylor guitar.

cheers.....Anton


MarkM
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Mon May 02, 2011 3:41 pm

Tony my man I've got to give you a "Dude that was sweet " line. I totally forgot about this lesson and you've just put a huge smile on my face at the end of a long Monday. I know that you had issues in the past with picking out individual bass lines. Well all your hard work has paid off as you have NO issues in this song. I thought the over all playing was just great. This song reminds me a bit of the style in the Greatful Dead's Friend of the Devil. Hit the base line and then a few DU on the high strings. The only thing I could suggest on this song is to hit those high strings just a bit harder after the bass notes. Really just a nitpick there. Other than that you are well on your way to a perfect song for your voice. Great job. Oh and I'm digg'n the beard!!!! Thanks for sharing!!!



MarkM


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skaladar
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Mon May 02, 2011 4:11 pm

Nice job on a great tune Tony. I enjoyed it very much. I prefer the 1st chorus after the 2nd verse myself. With 5 verses of ‘story’ I think a chorus after the 2nd and 5th verse is just right. And tell the story is just what you did … as it should be! I liked the way you imagined how Mr. Bojangles would sound although I suspect your slight cringe when he admits he “drinks a bit” tells me you think Mr. Bojangles acquired a bit of an Aussie accent for a second ... bah, it wouldn’t have even been noticed it if it wasn’t mentioned and I didn’t go back listening for what you objected to. I’ll let other add critical input, if any, because I think it just need a bit of aging so it flows a little smoother before it’s ready for open mike night.

Oh, on an aside; in what I think was my very first post in the forums, I answered one of your probing questions, “Are you intimidated?” … In my reply I rambled something about being inspired to finish transposing “Mr. Bojangles” to the key of D as well as getting the cross-picking down in “From the Beginning”. It was that very topic and specifically your words of encouragement that motivated me to start uploading videos ... and for that I am very grateful.

Thanks for sharing

♫ Ken ♫


jimcjimc
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Mon May 02, 2011 4:29 pm

Tony,
Great job picking and singing! That's a cool song and you did a nice job on it.
Jim


lueders
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Mon May 02, 2011 4:52 pm

Like the beard, but I didn't event think that was you at first. Lol! Overall, I thought that was excellent Tony!
Base notes sound great and the rest of it ain't bad either. I like your Bojangles voice.
Definitely sounds like some hard-living in that tone. lol!

I am gonna agree with Mark that I am not hearing the treble strings enough. I don't think it is because you are not hitting them hard enough, though. I think it is because you plain ain't hitting strings: 1-3 much at all... (at least most of the time.) You might try taking some bigger strokes and get a little more loosey- goosey and see what happens. I think it will make it sound a little "janglier." But that was VERY minor detail...I almost hate even bringing it up because it such a litttle thing.


Great job Tony!

P.S. I forgot to thank you for your comments on that Matt B. tune update I did a little while back So, I guess I'll thank you now: Glad you liked it and thanks for the kind comment, Sir.


tovo
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Mon May 02, 2011 5:51 pm

Willem and Anton my Dutch mates: Thanks for your comments I'm glad you both liked the tune.

Mark: Thanks mate. Thanks heaps for the tip on the high strings, I'll definitely take that aboard and use it to improve the tune. It's one that has been with me since I was a kid, I think from Sammy Davis Jnr, I'm almost ashamed to say I had never heard of Jerry Jeff before I got a bit of an education from Neil. I'm thrilled to be learning it now. You are also right that it's a great tune for learning to pick out individual strings.

Ken: Thanks so much for commenting. I wasn't cringing because of the accent, it was something else which I'll keep to myself! lol. Thanks also for relating your thoughts from that previous thread. I'm thrilled that I helped motivate you to start posting, that's just great.

Jim: Thanks man, appreciate it.

Cori: Yep hearing you on the high strings, as I said to Mark, definitely take that on board and work on it. Loosey-goosey is where it's at eh! Thanks for the comments and I look forward to your next effort.


suziko
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Mon May 02, 2011 6:06 pm

Tony,

Well that was fun to watch! My favorite part of your video? That you took my and Ness's suggestion to look at the camera more! It felt like you were really telling a story to the listener, and that made it so much more engaging (especially as this is a "story" song).

I think you did a great job picking out those bass notes. I don't think I've seen you do such a challenging flatpicking song, but you did a great job with that. I agree with Cori and Mark that you might bring out the high strings a bit more as you work to refine this song.

I have to admit- your "Bill "Bojangles" Robinson gave me a smile. According to Wikipedia (note- there's no citation for this, so it could be apocryphal!), the song was actually inspired by a street performer in a New Orleans jail, so that might account for that "hard living" voice :)

I have a soft spot in my heart for this song because I studied tap for a while as a child and briefly as an adult, and because one of my daughter's favorite picture books when she was little was about Bill Robinson. So I was happy to see you take it on, and very much do it justice.

I'm always happy to see a new video from you, Tony. Well done!

Suzi


millponddave
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Mon May 02, 2011 6:49 pm

Tony, Nice job. I enjoyed it very much. I think the song suite your voice nicely.

Dave


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